LOS ANGELES – The numbers in the stat line were a bit glaring, if not somewhat startling. Chris Paul turned the ball over six times, not just once but in back-to-back losses last week.

The Clippers’ point guard extraordinaire hadn’t fumbled the ball that much since late last season, when he turned the ball over seven times in a pair of games. Paul has averaged just 2.4 turnovers a game in his nine-plus year career.

While Paul’s turnovers are surprising, they aren’t alarming. No one, not even a four-time All-Star is perfect, Coach Doc Rivers said.

“He just had two bad games. I saw (the Green Bay Packers’) Aaron Rodgers played quarterback yesterday and I always try to tell everyone I swear these are human beings,” Rivers said, referring to Rodgers’ less-than-stellar performance Sunday against Buffalo.

“And they are going to continue to be human beings. They are going to make mistakes even sometimes when they wake up and want to play great.”

Rivers said there wasn’t any need to chastise Paul for his errant ball-handling because the point guard “is his worst critic. He’s probably killing himself over it. We just move on to the next game.”

Paul had just one turnover and eight assists in Monday’s 113-91 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

TOUGH STRETCH

Rivers isn’t hitting the panic button over a couple of losses in December. He said the Clippers are focusing on the bigger picture, that is, the playoffs in April.

Besides, with games seemingly every other night, the Clippers haven’t had much time to work out any kinks in practices. Rivers is known to cancel practice sessions and shootarounds on game days to give his players more rest.

“We’ve had a lot of slippage, which honestly is expected because I don’t know when we’ve had a practice that you could say was a good practice because of our schedule,” he said. “I don’t see another one coming for a while.”

The Clippers are in one of their toughest stretches, playing 12 games in 16 days, including two back-to-backs. One of those back-to-backs is on the road, in San Antonio on Dec. 22 followed by a game in Atlanta the next night. They return home the next day to prepare for a Christmas night game against the Golden State Warriors, the NBA’s top team.

“You go through this at times,” Rivers said. “You still try to win as many games as possible and you try to fix it with film and walk-throughs, but realistically you’re not going to fix it perfect.

“You just got to win games.”

SCORING WATCH

With a 3-pointer late in the third quarter, Blake Griffin moved into fifth place on the Clippers’ all-time scoring list.

The power forward entered the game needing 17 points to pass Danny Manning, who played six seasons for the Clippers (1988-94) and scored 7,120 points.

Griffin finished with 18 points Monday, giving him 7122 for his career. Next on the list is Elton Brand at No. 4 with 9,336 points.

Griffin isn’t just a scoring machine, though. He is the only player in the NBA averaging at least 22.5 points, seven rebounds and four assists this season.

HAWES OUT AGAIN

Spencer Hawes missed his second game because of a bone bruise in his left knee. Hawes suffered the injury in the first quarter of the Clippers’ loss against Washington on Friday. He sat out the Milwaukee game and is out indefinitely.

HAZARDS OF THE JOB

Rivers found it somewhat disturbing the Sacramento Kings fired Coach Mike Malone on Sunday after a 11-16 record, the team’s best start in several seasons.

“And they haven’t even had their best player,” Rivers said about center DeMarcus Cousins, who has been out since late November because of meningitis.

“It is what we do. We get fired. It’s amazing, some of them. Some you see coming and then there are others you don’t see coming. … We’re really hard on coaches. But that’s just the way of this league.”